An off-duty police officer was caught engaging in “consensual sexual activity” in a parked car at a train station in the Wellington region.
The details of the officer’s behaviour were made public by the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) today through a summary of the case.
The summary says the liaison took place at around 6pm, while it was still daylight, and lasted for about 15 minutes.
The encounter was spotted by a member of the public who was crossing a footbridge and who reported what they saw to police.
Inquiries soon identified one of the two involved was an off-duty officer.
“The officer and the other participant both admitted to engaging in sexual activity under the belief that they had taken necessary steps to avoid being seen by others,” the IPCA summary reads.
The investigating officer determined that there was “sufficient evidence” that both parties had committed an offence – being an indecent act in a public place – and recommended that prosecution was in the public interest.
The IPCA agreed, and the case was sent to the Police Criminal Charging Panel for consideration.
The panel determined the case was not in the public interest, and the officer and other participants were not charged.
“While the Authority disagrees with the charging panel’s determination on the public interest of prosecution, the Authority acknowledges that the decision on whether to charge their staff (or any member of the public) is solely a matter for Police. The Authority cannot intervene in those decisions,” the summary reads.
Following this, police undertook a confidential employment process, which found the officer had breached the code of conduct.
The officer was sanctioned for their conduct and apologised to the person who spotted them for “distress caused”.
“The Authority is satisfied Police undertook an appropriate process to consider the issues in the circumstances.”
In a statement to 1News, a police spokesperson said: “As per the website summary, this matter was investigated and an employment process was completed.
“We don’t have anything further to add.”
